Entertainment Review

Gears of War 4

I really liked 2011’s Gears of War 3 – hell, I'm quoted on the back of the game box calling it “the epic finale to a genre-defining series” – but once the shooty, bloody action trilogy had come to an end, once I’d cried my manly tears at the demise of brave soldier Dominic Santiago, once I'd hung up my chainsaw rifle and walked off into the sunset, I was done with Gears. That’ll do, COG. That'll do.

Which is why I came into Gears of War 4, out next week for Xbox One and Windows 10 PCs, with what could generously be described as trepidation. In the five years that have passed since Gears 3, plus a brief sojourn into 2013’s prequel Gears of War: Judgment, blasting away with guns while crouched behind cover has started to wear a little thin. And the thick-necked, un-ironic gruffness of do-ragged warrior Marcus Fenix had gone about as far as it could go. Did we really need another Gears?

Maybe not. But I’m glad it wasn’t my call to make.

In the hands of Vancouver-based game studio The Coalition, taking the reins from series creators Epic Games, Gears 4 breathes new life into a franchise that could just as easily remained dormant. While there are no mind-blowing evolutionary leaps here, it’s a thoroughly entertaining, impeccably produced, and at turns funny, dark and even emotional return to form for Gears. No tears this time, but plenty of oohs, ahhs and a surprising number of chuckles.

Players take on the role of James Dominic (aww) “J.D.” Fenix, the square-jawed renegade son of Gears of War’s legendary Marcus Fenix. While the ravaged world of Sera has spent 25 years rebuilding following both a civil war and an even more horrifying conflict against the underground race of nightmare creatures known as the Locust – both of which are visited in the game’s awesome tutorial chapter – all is not rosy on Sera. People who chafe under the leadership of the Coalition of Ordered Governments, aka the COG, are branded Outsiders, forced to live off the grid to avoid the iron fist of Jinn, the COG’s flinty leader.

But if outrunning and outgunning Jinn’s endless waves of robot soldiers wasn’t trouble enough, J.D., his soldier pal Del and their Outsider friend Kait find themselves at the forefront of a war against a brand new race of underground creepies dubbed the Swarm, which have the nasty habit of snatching humans to turn them into screeching monsters. Humans including Kait’s fearless mom, and… other important characters.

Their job? Get their people back. And stay alive.

As the first instalment in the franchise to debut on the Xbox One, Gears 4 looks fantastic. From the detail in the soldiers’ weapons and armor to the incredible lightning-streaked windstorms that force the gang to battle amidst flying debris, it’s one of most visually impressive Xbox games of the year. It also completely shakes off the dull browns, greys and general murk of the old Gears of War, with a world that’s exploding with brilliant red foliage, beautiful architecture… heck, even Jinn’s robot warriors look like they were built out of the brightest bits of metal the COG could fabricate.

The duck-and-cover shootouts that have defined the franchise since 2006’s Gears of War haven’t been radically altered, but a slew of new weapons and new enemy types keeps things interesting. There are some iffy lulls in the pacing of the story-focused campaign mode, though, made more obvious by the moments when the game really does kick into high gear, with set pieces that include a wild motorbikes vs. airplane battle, fights against jaw-droppingly massive monsters and a solid handful of other “holy crap!” encounters.

Strangely, though, it might be the characters and the backstory that I like most about Gears 4. An older and even crankier Marcus Fenix returns – that’s no surprise – but the interplay between the three younger leads and various supporting characters, particularly the snarly Jinn, is often genuinely funny. Gears 4 is infused with heart and humour, though it does stumble a bit when it tries to get too serious.

As expected, the competitive multiplayer component of Gears 4 is deep and expansive, though it remains an acquired taste – rolling shotgun battles just aren’t my thing. But the new Horde Mode 3.0 is a delight, balancing teamwork with a risk-and-reward system that has players retrieving energy from fallen foes to construct fortifications and stave off wave after wave of increasingly tough foes.

I’m impressed by how well The Coalition has remained faithful to the core of Gears of War while putting their own mark on the series. A memorable single-player experience blended with a robust suite of co-op and competitive multiplayer options, Gears of War 4 is a surprisingly great return to a franchise I thought I could live without.

Genre-defining? Not quite. Maybe that will come with Gears 5. Or Gears 6. That’s the thing about a Fenix – they always rise again.